I actually researched all these tea leaf meanings, btw!

Kurt had regretted not paying more attention to which electives he had chosen ever since the first day of third year, when he showed up at Divination and promptly developed a headache due to the potent combination of the incense scenting the air and Professor Trelawney's heinous fashion sense. He had tried to beg Professor McGonagall into letting him switch classes the next day, but apparently Hogwarts didn't have that policy, proving that the magical world wasn't always better than the Muggle.

He'd managed to survive two years of that hellhole, though, and his stubborn streak wasn't about to let that streak die any time soon, so he reluctantly stepped away from the Gryffindor table once he finished his breakfast and started slowly plodding up the stairs to the North Tower, cursing whoever had decided that the fifth years' all needed to start the week with Divination,.

One more year, Kurt thought as he climbed. You can give up this useless subject once you finish your O.W.L.s, Hummel, just get through one more year and you're free as a house-elf with an ascot.

The smile that had started spreading across Kurt's face at the thought of a house-elf rocking a silk scarf evaporated when he reached the classroom and saw where the only open seat was.

"Hi," Kurt mumbled, slipping down next to Blaine Anderson and flushing red involuntarily.

"Hey, Kurt!" Blaine said, smiling like he was genuinely pleased to see him. "Have a good summer?"

"Yes and no," Kurt replied, trying to stay casual. "I love seeing my family, especially my dad, but it's weird not being around magic all the time. I kept wanting to talk about what I was reading in the Prophet and forgetting that none of them really get what goes on here."

"That's gotta be hard," Blaine said sympathetically. "I forget how lucky I am to be from a wizard family sometimes."

"But you also never got to see your dad nearly pass out after McGonagall turned herself into a cat in front of him to prove she wasn't crazy," Kurt said, smiling at the memory. "So really, who's better off here?"

Blaine grinned back and made to reply, but Professor Trelawney appeared from almost nowhere and started class just then, forcing them to turn their attention to the front of the room.

Kurt zoned in and out during her welcome back speech, replaying his conversation with Blaine and analyzing it obsessively for any awkwardness. After the way he had made a fool of himself in front of Blaine at the end of last term, he was terrified of making himself look even worse in Blaine's eyes.

"Heeeey, Blaine!" Kurt had said, thrilled to see him at the spontaneous end-of-the-year party some of the sixth years had decided to throw. He was always happy to see Blaine, due to the massive crush he had, but the three firewhiskeys he had drunk earlier were also amplifying his happiness just then. "How'd you get here?"

"Oh, Mercedes snuck me in," Blaine replied, smiling politely and straightening his yellow-and-black tie. "She said it was only fair after I helped everyone sneak into the kitchens to get snacks."

"Awesome!" Kurt said, bouncing slightly on his toes. "I'm so glad you came!"

"You are?" Blaine asked, an expression on his face that Kurt couldn't really comprehend in his drunken state.

"I'm always happy to see you, Blaine," Kurt said. "You're the prettiest person in this whole school, for Merlin's sake. Ooooh, I love this song! You wanna dance?"

"I-"

"Oh no," Kurt interrupted, suddenly feeling his stomach turn. He bolted for the dorm bathroom, leaving Blaine in the dust, and managed to get through all the bustle of going home the next day without spotting Blaine again to apologize.

An insistent, breathy voice repeating "My dear!" finally broke Kurt out of his reverie.

"Yes, Professor?" Kurt asked, coloring pink again.

"It's time to practice with your partner," she said, an edge of annoyance in her supposedly "mystical" voice. "Please drink your tea while the energy is still fresh!"

Kurt looked down and saw that a full, blue teacup had been placed in front of him at some point. Raising the glass, he offered a wry, silent toast to Trelawney before taking his first sip.

"I hope it's fine," Blaine whispered. "She had a couple different pots available at the front, and I didn't know what kind you'd prefer."

"No, this is great," Kurt said, surprised Blaine even cared. "I love black tea."

They quickly finished off their drinks and followed Trelawney's instructions for "preparing the substance" before trading cups.

"So, you want to divine first or be told your future first?" Blaine asked once they were ready.

"I guess I'll get your predictions out of the way first," Kurt said after a moment of thought. "Fair warning, though: I have no idea what I'm doing."

"So we're on the same page," Blaine said warmly, shooting Kurt a playful smile that made his heart stutter in his chest.

Kurt fumbled for his book and flipped it to the section on reading tea leaves, hoping to anything that could potentially be listening that he'd see an interpretable shape in Blaine's cup. The first omen he determined, though, really wasn't what he was hoping to see.

"Okay, so it says to start at the handle...does that look kind of like a horse's head to you?" Kurt asked, pointing to a cluster of leaves.

"Yeah, I can see that."

"Great, so that means…," Kurt choked before reading the description out loud. "A lover."

"Interesting," Blaine said softly. When Kurt chanced a look at him, he didn't appear edgy or skeptical. "Anything else?"

"Well, that's definitely a heart. I don't think we even have to bother looking that up," Kurt said before turning the cup to another angle. "Hmm...this looks like it could be a swan. What does that - no. Are you kidding me?"

"What?"

"Swans mean news of love and romance," Kurt said, trying not to moan. "I swear I'm not finding these on purpose!"

"Why would I think you were?" Blaine asked, genuinely concerned.

"Because, you know - last spring, at the party," Kurt said quietly, not meeting Blaine's eyes. "When I completely embarrassed myself in front of you."

"Oh," Blaine said, demeanor instantly closing off. "If that was just the firewhiskey talking, I underst-"

"No!" Kurt said, not wanting Blaine to get the wrong idea. He turned to face Blaine head on before speaking again. "No, that wasn't the problem. The problem was me just babbling about how cute I find you like a moron instead of saying it in a way that might make you actually want to go out with me sometime."

"You didn't sound like a moron," Blaine said, eyes sparkling. "I was surprised, I'll admit, but not in a bad way."

"No?" Kurt asked, hope starting to bubble up in his chest. He bit his lip to keep from smiling too broadly.

"Not when I think the same thing about you," Blaine admitted. "I was going to take you up on that offer to dance if you hadn't had to run off like that."

"Can I make it up to you, then?" Kurt said, giving up on hiding his glee. "Madam Puddifoot's has dancing on the weekends, doesn't it?"

"It does, and you can," Blaine said, smiling right back. "I don't have any plans for the next Hogsmeade weekend, either."

"Neither do I, as it turns out," Kurt said. "Would you like to go with me? I promise I'll stick to butterbeer this time."

"Sounds perfect," Blaine said, leaning in and kissing Kurt's cheek. "I can hardly wait."

"What is this?" Trelawney interrupted, making Kurt jump and remember they weren't alone. "There is no canoodling in my classroom, boys."

"Sorry, Professor," they both replied, hastily getting back to the task at hand. Blaine smirked as he read Kurt's cup and then the textbook.

"An egg," he said, pointing to a shape near the edge of Kurt's cup. "Apparently that's a good omen. And this kite means wishes coming true."

"Just when I was giving up entirely on this class," Kurt mused.

"Maybe some things really are meant to be," Blaine said.

"I think we'll know for sure in a couple of days, but I get the feeling you're onto something," Kurt said playfully.

"I guess we'll have to keep consulting the omens until we find out," Blaine teased back.

(A few days later, Kurt and Blaine both knew they didn't need omens to predict how their future would go. They did, however, need Trelawney to stop referring to them as "the fated pair" to anyone who would listen.)